Change 'In' Becomes Change 'Out'

When our next best course of action seems unclear, any dilemmas we face can appear insurmountable. Yet there is nothing we cannot overcome with time, persistence, focused thought, help, and faith. Whatever the situation or problem, there is always a solution. And if you remember to look within, even as you search around you for the “right” course of action, you will be able to center yourself, clear your mind, and see that nothing has to be impossible.

The first step in overcoming any obstacle is to believe that it can be overcome. Doing so will give you the strength and courage to move through any crisis. The second step is to make a resolution that you can prevail over any chaos. Enlist your support network of family and friends if necessary. The more minds there are to consider a problem, the more solutions can be found. Don’t discount ideas just because they seem impractical or “unrealistic,” and don’t keep searching for the “best” alternative. Often there is no “best” choice, there is only a choice to make so we can begin moving beyond whatever is obstructing our path. At the very least, making a choice, even if isn’t the ideal one, can give you a sense of peace before you have to figure out what your next course of action will be.

If you feel overwhelmed by the scope of your troubles, you may want to think of other people who have turned adversity into triumph. We often gain a fresh perspective when we remember others who have overcome larger obstacles. It can be inspiring to hear of their victories, helping us remember that there is always light at the end of every tunnel. It is during our darkest hours that we sometimes need to remind ourselves that we don’t have to feel helpless. You have within and around you the resources to find a solution to any problem. And remember that if a solution or choice you make doesn’t work, you are always free to try another. Believe that you can get through anything, and you will always prevail.

Getting What We Need(ed)

Most of us come to a point in our lives when we question why we are doing what we are doing, and many of us come to realize that we may be living our lives in an effort to make our parents happy. This realization can dawn when we are in our 20s, our 40s, or even later, depending upon how tight a hold our family of origin has on our psyche. We may feel shocked or depressed by this information, but we can trust that it is coming to us at this time because we are ready to find out what it would mean to live our lives for ourselves, following the call of our own soul, and refusing any longer to be beholden to someone else’s expectations.

One of the most common reasons we are so tied into making our parents, or others, happy, is that we were not properly mirrored when we were children. We were not honored as individuals in our own right, with a will and purpose of our own, to be determined by our own unfolding. As a result, we learned to look outside of ourselves for approval, support, and direction rather than look within. The good news is that the part of us that was not adequately nurtured is still there, inside us, like a seed that has not yet received the sunlight and moisture it needs to open and to allow its inner contents to unfurl. It is never too late to provide ourselves with what we need to awaken this inner being.

There are many ways to create a safe container for ourselves so that we can turn within and shine the light of awareness there. We may join a support group, go to therapy, or start a practice of journaling every day for half an hour. This experience of becoming is well worth the difficult work that may be required of us to get there. In whatever process we choose, we may feel worse before we feel better, but we will ultimately find out how to live our lives for ourselves and how to make ourselves happy.

A Soldiers Unseen Wounds

A gun, a tank, a rocket launcher all make sense if you are a member of any of our armed services on a tour in the Middle East. They are necessary for the tasks that these men and women have been trained and, for better or worse, fit into the context of war.
Just as a rifle is a tool with a specific design; the sight to hone in on a target, materials that resist wear and damage, a magazine to hold rounds to defend or attack, a trigger to engage the sole purpose of the tool. So too, can a mind be conditioned to serve a specific purpose to suite an environment and a context that can be imagined, practiced and realized in mission after mission.
The difference is that the rifle is not expected to change purpose at the end of a tour. Whether in ‘that’ environment or another it maintains it’s function and form.
We expect our servicemen and women to suddenly, and with little preparation or explanation to change context, change purpose, dial back intensity, leave the thousands of hours of training in the camps.
If you are one of them. It may be one of most difficult experiences you have ever had, or will have. Feelings of detachment and isolation even when around familiar people, not feeling purposeful or needed, having a loss of direction and confusion about the future. These are all common to the returning soldier.
Aside from the personal effects, behavioral issues compound the problem. Poor sleep patterns, rapid mood changes, aggression and irritability, depression and even panic attacks can all be an unfortunate result of a rapid transition into what many soldiers had hoped for upon their return.
These symptoms are all part of a sydrome related to Acute Stress Disorder. This is the diagnosis that precludes Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In later years the military has done a much better job of acknowledging wars effect on soldiers. However, the treatment modalities used such as Systematic Desensitization and Group therapies often offer little help.
The good news is that the prognosis for Acute Stress Disorder, PTSD and other trauma related issues is very good in that symptoms can be managed in a relatively short time and a healthier experience of themselves can begin immediately.
Please read more regarding EMDR and Neurobehavioral Medicine or call me to see if you, or someone you know may be a good candidate for treatment. And, Thank you for your service.

Our Hero's Unseen Wounds

A gun, a tank, a rocket launcher all make sense it you are a member of any of our armed services on a tour in the Middle East. They are necessary for the tasks that these men and women have been trained and, for better or worse, fit into the context of war.
Just as a rifle is a tool with a specific design; the sight to hone in on a target, materials that resist wear and damage, a magazine to hold rounds to defend or attack, a trigger to engage the sole purpose of the tool. So too, can a mind be conditioned to serve a purpose to suite an environment and a context that can be imagined, practiced and realized in mission after mission and in gunfire battles.
The difference is that the rifle is not expected to change purpose at the end of a tour. Whether is ‘that’ environment or another is maintains it’s function and form.
We expect our servicemen to suddenly, and with little preparation or explanation to change context, change purpose, dial back intensity, leave the thousands of hours of training in the camps.
If you are one of them. It may be one of most difficult experiences you have ever had, or will have. Feelings of to be con’t….

Couples Therapy

First, it is important to realize that couples therapy, marriage counseling and marital therapy are all the same. These different names have been used to describe the same process, with the difference often based on which psychotherapy theory is favored by the psychologist using the term, or whether an insurance company requires a specific name for reimbursement.

Couples therapy is often seen as different from psychotherapy because a relationship is the focus of attention, instead of one individual diagnosed with a specific psychological problem. This difference only arises if you consider psychological problems to be similar to medical illnesses, and therefore confined to a “sick” individual who needs treatment. That medical model of psychological diagnosis and treatment is common, but is really inadequate to describe and resolve psychological problems. All psychological problems, and all psychological changes, involve both individual symptoms (behavior, emotions, conflicts, thought processes) and changes in interpersonal relationships.

Couples therapy focuses on the problems existing in the relationship between two people. But, these relationship problems always involve individual symptoms and problems, as well as the relationship conflicts. For example, if you are constantly arguing with your spouse, you will probably also be chronically anxious, angry or depressed (or all three). Or, if you have difficulty controlling your temper, you will have more arguments with your partner.

In couples therapy, the therapist will help you and your partner identify the conflict issues within your relationship, and will help you decide what changes are needed, in the relationship and in the behavior of each partner, for both of you to feel satisfied with the relationship.

These changes may be different ways of interacting within the relationship, or they may be individual changes related to personal psychological problems. Couples therapy involves learning how to communicate more effectively, and how to listen more closely. Couples must learn how to avoid competing with each other, and need to identify common life goals and how to share responsibilities within their relationship. Sometimes the process is very similar to individual psychotherapy, sometimes it is more like mediation, and sometimes it is educational. The combination of the these three components is what makes it effective.

What I Need to Know about Anxiety: Part II

Anxiety is an emotional state commonly caused by the perception of real or potential danger that threatens the security of the individual. Everyone experiences a certain amount of nervousness and apprehension when faced with a stressful situation. Usually, the response is reasonable and adaptive, and contains a built-in control mechanism to return to a normal physiologic state. For some people, however, anxiety is more than just a temporary discomfort. For these individuals anxiety can be debilitating. It is when anxiety states become excessive or prolonged, particularly if it produces such psychological and physical stress, that the person cannot perform the activities of daily living, that medical help should be sought.

In general, anxiety disorders are a group of illnesses that develop before age 30 and are more common in women and those with a family history of anxiety and depression. Anxiety disorders are among the most frequent mental disorders encountered in a clinical setting. Approximately 8% of the population will experience at least one anxiety disorder in their lifetime.(1) Unfortunately, the majority of people with anxiety disorders receive no professional treatment.(2) This is unfortunate because there is a great deal of success in treating anxiety disorders and a life that has been paralyzed can be renewed with appropriate treatment.

There are behavioral, cognitive, physical and medical skills/interventions to both manage and/or resolve patholigical anxiety (being that some anxiety is normal and non-intrusive) and panic attacks.

Please feel free to contact me. I work with individuals with anxiety, trauma, PTSD and with couples and adolescents.

Anxiety Snapshot

One of my many reasons for working with individuals with Anxiety, Panic Attacks and PTSD is that they all carry a very good prognosis. Meaning that, when treated properly, we can expect positive results and we can expect them to last.

When I hear of someone or meet someone who has suffered from long-term generalized anxiety or Panic Attacks I feel a sense of urgency to make changes early on. There is simply no reason why a person should suffer with either of these debilitating clusters of symptoms.

Anxiety and Panic are expressions of a problem at a deeper level. Much like pain in the body, anxiety is a signal that something needs to change. Part of the work is discovering what change needs to occur, part of the work is finding behaviors to manage, reduce or eliminate the attacks/anxeity and part of the work is trusting the change that occurs over the long run.

That being said, treatment approaches can involve emotional, behavioral, environmental, familial and spiritual aspects of a person’s life. While the work to minimize the suffering is primary, the secondary changes that occur in this exploration enrich every aspect a persons’ life.

I work with individuals with problems with anxiety, PTSD, trauma as well as with couples and adolescents.

Biggest Weapon on Board

Anxiety is one of the most common and debilitating issues on the planet. Anti-anxiety medication is a multibillion dollar industry and appears to be epidemic partly due to cultural issues as well as personal/experiential issues.

The intervention list for Anxiety is extensive. Treatment can include medications from the SSRI class or benzodiazepine class. The former manipulates the chemical and electrical impulses of the brain, the latter have both a sedative and addictive quality. When in crisis, or, when indicated in working in treatment with severe traumatic history or PTSD, both of these classes of medication have their respective place. They can provide a behavioral window of opportunity to allow treatment to occur while resolving highly charged memories or triggers.

There are also many non-medical interventions of which I will name a few; yoga, meditation/mindfulness practice, T’ai Chi, vigorous exercise, life-management, boundaries work, nutritional and homeopathic approaches and the list goes…....

In my experience the most effective interventions are the simplest and the most mobile. While we have no certainty how one medication will work for us based on our own chemistry, and we don’t all have the time or the funds to access a yoga studio or a Naturopathic physician….we all have our breath.

Our breathing patterns are our first physiological response to a perceived threat in our environment. A hastening amount of oxygen coming into our lungs causes a cascade of changes in the body i.e. increased heart rate, a change in our perception of our self and our environment as well as hormonal and adrenal surges.

By learning simple and brief breathing techniques we can prevent and/or intervene and ‘short-circuit’ an episode of anxiety and Panic Attacks as well. Regular practice can immediately reduce the overall level of anxiety in your life as well as increase a sense of peace and groundedness.

While learning these skills will be invaluable, they may be the first step in resolving the root cause of the anxiety/panic attack. If this is the case for you, please seek professional help. Anxiety, panic attacks, trauma and PTSD all have a very good prognosis if treated correctly.

I work with Anxiety, Panic Attacks/Trauma/PTSD, couples and adolescents. Please see my ‘About Lee’ page.

'Being' Our Wanted Thoughts

Those of us on the path of personal and spiritual growth have a tendency to analyze our unhappiness in order to find the causes and make improvements. But it is just as important, if not more so, to analyze our happiness. Since we have the ability to rise above and observe our emotions, we can recognize when we are feeling joyful and content. Then we can harness the power of the moment by savoring our feelings and taking time to be grateful for them.

Recognition is the first step in creating change, therefore recognizing what it feels like to be happy is the first step toward sustaining happiness in our lives. We can examine how joy feels in our bodies and what thoughts run through our minds in times of bliss. Without diminishing its power, we can retrace our steps to discover what may have put us in this frame of mind, and then we can take note of the choices we’ve made while there. We might realize that we are generally more giving and forgiving when there’s a smile on our face, or that we are more likely to laugh off small annoyances and the actions of others when they don’t resonate with our light mood.

Once we know what it feels like and can identify some of the triggers and are aware of our actions, we can recreate that happiness when we are feeling low. Knowing that like attracts like, we can pull ourselves out of a blue mood by focusing on joy. We might find that forcing ourselves to be giving and forgiving, even when it doesn’t seem to come naturally, helps us to reconnect with the joy that usually precedes it. If we can identify a song, a picture, or a pet as a happiness trigger, we can use them as tools to recapture joy if we are having trouble finding it. By focusing our energy on analyzing happiness and all that it encompasses, we feed, nurture, and attract more of it into our lives, eventually making a habit of happiness.

Creating Intention for the Day

The moment during the day when we very first open our eyes and come into consciousness is a precious opportunity. It sets the tone for all that comes after it, like the opening scene in a film or novel. At this moment, our ability to create the day is at its most powerful, and we can offer ourselves fully to the creative process by filling this moment with whatever inspires us most. It may be that we want to be more generous, or it may be that we want to be more open to beauty in our daily lives. Whatever the case, if we bring this vision into our minds at this very fertile moment, we empower it to be the guiding principle of our day.

Sometimes we wake up with a mood already seemingly in place, and it’s important to give this feeling its due. It can inform us and deepen our awareness to what’s going on inside us, as well as around us. As long as we are conscious, we can honor this feeling and also introduce our new affirmation or vision, our conscious offering to the day. We may want to decide before we go to sleep what we want to bring to the next day of our lives. It could be that we simply want to be more open to whatever comes our way. Or we may want to summon a particular quality such as confidence. Then again, we may simply call up a feeling that perfectly captures the texture we want our day to have.

We can reaffirm our vision or affirmation as we shower and eat breakfast, as well as recalling it at various times throughout the day. We can write it down and carry it with us on a little slip of paper if this helps. Simply by being aware of those first moments, we set the stage for a more conscious, enlivened experience, and we become active participants in the creation of our lives.